They say there’s nothing new under the sun. This is especially true in the marketing realm, where business owners are constantly at work to come up with something fresh and engaging. It can be overwhelming, and it’s especially tempting to look to others’ ideas when creating something of your own. The trouble comes when the line between drawing inspiration and stealing is called into question. Should you not reference anyone at all? Or is it alright to look for inspiration? The Dangers of Copying: You can be sued. It’s called plagiarism, and it sucks. If you’re mirroring a logo, a website design, ect., too closely, then you’ll run into some very real legal issues. If you remodel your website to be the same look as Amazon, it doesn’t matter if you make the font a blue instead of a black – people can tell the difference and you’re breaking copyrighting laws. You won’t stand out as original. Originality is very important when making a name for your business. No one said you had to reinvent the wheel, but you make an impression upon potential customers in how you present yourself. If your first foot forward is clearly too similar to another business, then customers won’t think, “Hey, that’s a catchy slogan.” They’ll think, “That is such a rip-off.” It could result in your business looking low quality and cheap – a fatal blow. Advertising will be harder. Your business needs to have a unique flavor. If something about your business engages the customer — your name, logo, slogan – then you’re sticking in their mind. That’s the goal of...

When creating a company, the most important part can be coming up with a name. You can offer the most amazing products at the most affordable prices, or provide wonderful services with raving approval from customers, but it won’t amount to much unless you’re marketable. Your name is a part of the first impression you make upon a consumer, and if they don’t remember it, they’ll have trouble finding you in the future. If they don’t like it, then they may choose another company with a more appealing title. These little details have a profound impact on the customers, and therefore, your business. Here are some tips to come up with a good company name: Make it memorable. When choosing a name for your company, make sure it’s one that will cement in the consumer’s head. Think of all the companies you know and their names. What about their names makes it spring to your mind? Is it the way the words rhythm? Is it the catchy but short sound? Find something that makes it memorable and apply that technique to your name. Make it unique. When someone says your company’s name, their thoughts should go straight to your business and your business alone. There is danger in making your name too similar to another company’s. Minds will go to something that is familiar. If you name your grocery store WilliamMart, people’s minds will still go straight to WalMart and leave your brand name behind. It doesn’t matter that your name is longer and clearly different. It will stop you from making a strong reputation for yourself, because you’ll...

The Internet is a beautiful well of knowledge and resources; to the point where it’s nearly suffocating. Even if your home business offers great services or products, it’s easy to be overlooked by louder competition or simply the ever constant buzz of mass content. Getting your name out there will be what leads to you success. This can be done through: Ads. First, create an engaging, eye-catching ad that will draw web surfers to your site. Then, seek out other websites and offer either money or services in exchange for renting space on their site. By spreading your ad around to different places, you’re capitalizing on a broad audience that is otherwise untouched. Be creative about where you advertise and try to reach a broad spectrum, but be aware that your greatest profits will come from sites similar to your own. Those surfers know what they’re looking for, and if they see you’re offering it at the simple click of a button, you’ll have gained yourself a happy customer. SEO. When someone types in a search on their web browser, they’re very likely to choose a page link off the first page results and move on. A great percentage of them will not click to the second page. As a business and as a website, it’s paramount for you to be found on that first page. SEO accomplishes this by using keywords to make you more relevant to different searches, which increases your chance of showing up immediately in a results page. SEO companies and freelancers can be expensive, but their services are invaluable for increasing traffic on your...

In the Internet age, it’s common to hear the question, “How are you supposed to make money with a website?” Unless you’re a company that sells products or a freelancer selling services, that can be a hard question to answer. However, there are indeed ways to make money with a website – and for those who are already making money, there are ways to make even more money. Banner ads If you have a large following or notable traffic on your website, the free space on the edges of your screen are valuable to businesses looking to get their name out there. Many websites will pay very well to display a sizable banner advertisement of their site or services where your visitors can see it. The only downside to this is your site has to be very popular before most businesses will search you out. They won’t want to pay money unless they can see a profitable return, which can only be accomplished through a great increase in traffic. However, should you score one such deal, it can be very lucrative. Product reviews. Many companies will pay handsomely to not only be promoted on your website, but to have their products showcased to your viewers. By making a short video or a small blog post about a service or product a company offers, it increases their traffic and sales, and they’re willing to reward through this method. Having a successful website is crucial for being sought out, however, it’s also acceptable for you to present the offer to the company. Google AdSense. By signing up with this network and...